11-10-2024 - The Growing Christian and Their Battle with the Enemy - Part II

Text: Ephesians 6:10-18

                    Last Sunday we looked at the spiritual battle between Christians and Satan and how we can prepare for it.  This morning, we are going to look further at the tools we need in order to be thoroughly prepared for the battle.  Our text is from Ephesians 6:16-20 where Paul wrote:  “(16) Above all, taking the shield of Faith, wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.  (17)And take the Helmet of Salvation, the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; (18) praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit with all perseverance for all Saints.  (19) For me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the Mystery of the Gospel, (20) for which I am an ambassador in bounds; that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”

                   As Christians, we will always be fighting against the powerful evil forces of fallen angels that are led by Satan who is an extremely vicious fighter.  God has given us the armor we need to use and protect us as we fight this battle.  Last week we looked at the Girdle, or covering, of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, and the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace.  All of these are critical pieces of our armor of protection, but that’s only half of the uniform.  To be fully clothed, protected, and prepared to fight, the rest of the armor that we must be covered with is the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit.  So, let’s look at them now.

                   Verse 16 talks about the Shield of Faith.  Paul tells us we are under attack by fiery darts, and when he wrote “above all, taking the shield of faith” he is telling us that Faith is the most important part of the armor of God.  In ancient warfare, two kinds of shields were used.  A large shield was meant to hide behind, and a small shield was used while the soldier was on the move.  The large shield is what enables us to overcome and repel every attack by Satan and his evil soldiers.  Their weapons against us include but aren’t limited to fiery darts of pride, envy, doubt, worry, fear, lust, anger, and the desire for vengeance.  Our faith in the Cross of Jesus Christ is the only faith that God and even Satan will recognize.  It’s our faith that enables us to resist the temptations that Satan will use to try to destroy us.  When we throw up our Shield of Faith, we are assured that everyone born of God can overcome the world and Satan.  When we stand firm in faith with courage, even when Satan uses his most fearsome weapons, God, through our faith, promises that we will be victorious over Satan.

                   Verse 17 speaks of the Helmet of Salvation.  It clearly has to do with the head, which is the home of the mind.  Paul is telling of the need to constantly renew our mind and understanding that everything we receive from the Lord comes to us through the Cross.  To be able to live life with this complete understanding, we must constantly study our Bible.  When our minds are full of the knowledge of the Bible, our faith grows stronger and that allows us to stand strong against Satan and his enemies so we will win the battles.  Paul teaches us in verse 20 that we can have this assurance when he wrote that he ought to speak boldly so that he would not allow the persecution he was experiencing – he was writing from prison -- to stop him from preaching as he was called to do.  II Timothy 2:12 tells us when we suffer and fight the good fight of faith, we will also reign with Jesus in Heaven.  But if we deny Jesus, He will also deny us.  Dwight L Moody, the 1890’s evangelist and founder of the Moody Bible Institute, once said:  “I never knew a person who was effective in the Lord’s service who did not have assurance of His salvation.”  Strong faith ensures our salvation and a place in Heaven for eternity.

                   Next we have the Sword of the Spirit, also found in verse 17.  We all know the sword is an important battle weapon.  Paul tells us that our sword is the Word of God – our Bible.  This is our best offensive weapon in our armor of God.  We see in Matthew 4 how it was used by Jesus in the wilderness when Satan tried to tempt Him.  Jesus quoted Scripture and Satan left Him alone.  Psalm 119:9-11 tells us how it was David’s faith that allowed him to live a clean life.  We have to know our Bible so that we can use it to assure ourselves of the power of God’s Word.  When we use it against Satan, he will run away from us just as he ran away from Jesus in the wilderness.  You Bible makes Satan run away from you.  Here’s a little secret.  If you feel you are being overpowered by things out of your control, just whisper “Jesus help me” and you will soon find away out of what has you bogged down.  But do this with faith knowing that Jesus will be there.  Without faith, it won’t work!

                   Every Christian has a complete suit of armor to fight and win against the enemies of God.  It consists of the Girdle of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace, the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit.  We are never defenseless when we fight the spiritual battle against Satan and his army. 

                   Verse 18 tells us we must pray all the time with supplication in the Spirit.  This means incessant pleading until the prayer is answered and watching or being sensitive to what the Holy Spirit wants from us, with all perseverance and supplication – in other words, don’t stop. 

                   Finally, success in any battle also requires communication with headquarters.  Prayer is our direct line of communication to our headquarters and our Commander-in-Chief.  We never need to make an appointment ahead of time.  As children we learned a song called Royal Telephone.  It speaks of prayer as the unbreakable connection Christians have to communicate with our all-powerful God.  The song starts out with “Central’s never busy, always on the line, you can hear from Heaven, almost any time.  Tis a royal service, free for one and all, when you get in trouble, give this royal line a call.”  It goes on to talk about how the only thing that causes disruption in our direct connection is us.  Perhaps we have doubted our faith or chosen to set it aside for a worldly life rather than the Christian life.  Prayer is our direct line, and it is also what is needed and necessary for our victory over Satan.  If your communication line is broken, look deeply into your life and see what you need to change.  Even though Paul was in prison he wasn’t discouraged or defeated.  He wrote powerful letters, and as  we see in verses 19 and 20, he prayed that the Lord would still allow him to continue to properly teach the new covenant which is the story of our salvation through the Cross of Jesus.  He didn’t ask for release from prison.  He had faith that God could use him regardless of the circumstances in which he found himself.  If you aren’t hearing what you want from God, perhaps your request is outside of His will for you.  He sees the big picture, past, present and future.  He could be protecting you by directing you away from something that will harm you.  God never leaves us.  It is us who lack faith or turn our backs on Him.  Don’t let the things of this world break down your armor or cut off your communication with the God who loves you so much that He allowed His only Son to die for you so that you could be welcomed back into His family as equal heirs with Jesus.

                   Until we meet again, may God bless and keep you, may He shine His light on you, show you grace, and give you peace in all the days ahead.